Spirituality of the Religious Life According to St. Stanislaus Papczyński 80 This emphasis won’t be found in Regula decem beneplacitorum; it stresses the importance of the Eucharist only for the advancement in prayer.153 We must point out that in his views on the path of illumination – especially the “illumination of reason” and its close link to faith as the light for the human mind (as it were) – Papczyński is not far from the concept of Chryzostom Dobrosielski, OFM (†1676), who worked within the framework of St. Bonaventure’s theology.154 Although the Marian Founder does not make a clear distinction between “intellectual and affective illumination” as does the Franciscan theologian, yet the motive of illumination as “a passage of the mind from the darkness of ignorance to clear cognition of spiritual and divine truths” and the reference to “the light of holy faith” are also dear to the author of Inspectio cordis. This can also be an indication that Papczyński’s theological studies done from 1655-1656 at St. Anthony College of the Friars Minor in Warsaw made a deeper impression on his intellectual formation than was previously believed. On the other hand, his concept of resignatio is quite original. We may surmise that the Marian Founder drewmany ideas from the teaching of St. Thomas a Kempis and his book “The Imitation of Christ,” where the idea of resignatio appears, while one of the chapters is entitled in Latin: “De pura et integra resignatione cordis ad obtinendam sui libertatem.”155 It seems however, that attributing the rank of a virtue to resignatio, placing it in the biblical context, as well as deriving its main traits from Christ’s attitude and incorporating them into the path to supernatural perfect love has been a personal contribution of Saint Stanislaus Papczyński. We did not discover any influence of other writers of spiritual theology listed by A. Derville156, including even the well-known such as, e.g., St. Francis de Sales. 153 Cf. Regula, p. 50. 154 Cf. J, Misiurek, Historia i teologia polskiej..., pp. 360-361; W. Słomka, Dobrosielski Stefan OFM Ref., EK 3, col. 1395-1396. 155 The title of this chapter (No. 37) was translated into English as: “A Pure and Entire Resignation of Self to Obtain Freedom of Heart” (see www.catholictreasury. info/books/imitation_of_Christ/index.php) – note of the translator. 156 Cf. A. Derville, op. cit., col. 414-415.
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